Team: HH, Yahiko, thursdays (5/10)

Whats up with that look? Do you wanna die?

The Monkey Kings shedding frowned and growled.

Yeon-woo flinched because he knew that he had been thinking about something ridiculous, but since the Monkey King hadnt read his mind, he decided to be shameless.

I dont know what youre talking about, sir.

Geez, all these bastards left and right. They only have thoughts of betrayal. Whew.

The shedding sighed, extremely annoyed.

How did you end up like this?

I know, right? Its so embarrassing why I am.. wait. Hey, lets talk later.

Yeon-woo was about to ask why, but he felt something approaching them and quickly hid his presence behind a column.

Soon, someone walked into the cave.

Yeon-woos eyes widened when he realized who it was.

Kindred.

The second bishop of the Devil Army grinned mischievously like a child as he spoke.

I came to greet you today as well, other face of the Heavenly Demon. How have you been, sir? Did you sleep well?

I would feel better if I didnt have to see your face.

Oh, dear. Thats a shame. I want to help with that, but the people who can come here to serve you are limited..

Thats why I said I dont need any of that, so untie me right now.

The Monkey King lifted up the chains that bound his arms and legs.

They made a clacking sound as the chains connected to the wall extended and fell back down on the ground again.

You said Im one of the gods you serve? Then how can you treat a god like this?

I would like to help you with that as well.

Kindred raised a corner of his mouth.

But wont you try to kill me then?

No. Why would I kill you?

Really?

Of course. I wont just kill you. Ill rip you apart.

The sheddings eyes turned sharp.

Hwak

An intense, murderous aura settled upon them. It was a fighting spirit fitting of a trace of the Heavenly Demon.

Sweat beaded on Kindreds forehead, but he didnt lose his smile.

See? I dont have any other way if I want to live. Please wait just a little more. Nothing will change anyway.

Nothing will change?

Yes, sir. Cant you just think youre moving houses?

I should definitely rip your mouth apart first.

I apologize if I said anything to infuriate you.

Kindred politely bowed.

And I want to break that head.

All that came in return was the Monkey Kings murderous aura and smirk.

However, it didnt matter to Kindred. From when he had caused the Monkey Kings shedding to end up like this, no, from when he had refused to be served during their first meeting, Kindred had expected this.

Being disliked by the god you served was dejecting, but it wasnt enough to bend Kindreds lunatic faith.

Then you wont change your mind even now?

I already said so, but if I leave here, theres only one reason why I would.

The shedding grinned.

To rip your mouth.

Kindred frowned. In the end, he couldnt convince the shedding. It seemed he would have to forcefully progress with things now.

The ceremony will start soon. Well do our best not to make you uncomfortable, but things may be hard for a bit, so please prepare for it.

He disappeared into smoke after he finished talking.

Dum, dum, dum

The world began to tremble. It shook up and down as the sound of a bell ringing in a temple steadily descended upon them.

As the shaking became worse, the space began to crack.

What is.

Yeon-woo came out from behind the column.

What do you think it is? Those damned bastards began the ceremony. Psychos. They dont care about what the god they serve thinks, and theyre talking about honor? Bulls***.

Annoyance was on the Monkey Kings sheddings face. The crumpled space became whole again.

He was probably fighting against the forces from the outside that were trying to seal the Imaginary World.

Yeon-woo thought that the Devil Army was going to win this fight.

When I first heard the Devil Army was creating a sacrificial vessel, I thought you were in on it.

Me? Why would I be?

The shedding snorted.

Let me just tell you one this. The kiddo the one they call the Heavenly Demon never wanted that. Hes worse than me, so he doesnt like noisy things like this.

Yeon-woo remembered what he heard about the Heavenly Demon having thrown the Devil Army away a long time ago.

It was a long time ago when the Heavenly Demon fell into a deep slumber. It was when the head bishop replaced all nine of the bishop spots after Black Dawns fall.

Its a truth that only a few people know, but the current bishops of the Devil Army are only halves that arent permitted the Heavenly Demons Authority.

No, to be exact, cursed halves.

All they could do was borrow the strength of the Heavenly Demon from his other bodies using an artifact.

There was information about the Devil Army in the diary.

Yeon-woo learned the artifact they used was the Ruyi Bang some time ago.

And the current head bishop who got rid of the previous head bishop and the other bishops is. A real monster.

There was a hierarchy within the Nine Kings. Obviously, the Martial King and the Summer Queen were at the top. The one who was considered to be near their level was the head bishop.

And if the head bishop was given permission to use the Authority?

No one knew what would happen.

This was the reason why the Devil Army had caused this situation. If they could awaken the Monkey King through his shedding, they would be able to gain an Authority indirectly.

And if he changes his body, he can cleanse himself of the curse.

The current head bishop was cursed by the Heavenly Demon.

But if he moved into a new body, that would change. That was why Doyle was needed.

The reason why Kindred had tried to take Sesha in the past was to provide a potential candidate for the head bishop.

Moreover, that was why he had appeared in the fight against Walpurgisnacht to obtain the Philosophers Stone.

Yeon-woo wanted to mess this up for them.

They always interfered with whatever he was doing, so in the end, there was nothing he could do but fight.

Why are you like this?

Cant you see? I was caught by the damned thing.

Yeon-woo looked closely at the chains around the shedding. Realizing what it was, his eyes widened. It was a metal he knew too fell.

Is this Divine Iron?

Yeah. To be exact, its the Golden Headband.

!

The Golden Headband. It was the divine artifact that was placed on the Monkey Kings head to stop him from wrecking chaos.

He had taken off the headband after finishing everything the heavenly world assigned to him, but if the Devil Army had forced it back on?

They even used the Golden Headband. Shit, I couldnt do anything.

It meant the Devil Army had caught the Monkey Kings shedding after a lot of preparation.

It could seem impossible for such a powerful being to be caught, but there were probably limits to what he could do because he was in the Imaginary World.

And Sheng, that guy was flicked out too.. f***.

Yeon-woo didnt know exactly why, but it seemed the Dragon God couldnt get into this world anymore.

Anyways. Why are you here? I saw you were causing a ruckus outside. Did you come to do the same here?

You knew?

Hey. This is my palace. If I dont know whats happening in my own front yard, Id be a stupid a***, not a human.

The shedding flicked his finger.

Then, the space in front of Yeon-woo wavered, and different scenes appeared.

-How are you..!

-The. Toy. Whos. Copying. Me. Only. Amounts. To. That. Much?

Doctor Doom seemed out of it because of the continuous magic attacks that Boo was shooting at him. Most of his magic circles were cracked, and his artifacts were broken.

The magicians that he brought were already slaughtered by the skeletons.

In a moment, the strongest of the Magic Tower were dead, and as their souls were absorbed by Yeon-woo, their knowledge was naturally absorbed by Boo.

-How can a person like you serve a mere human?! What happened to you?!

It seemed Doctor Doom had realized Boos identity. He was shouting as he vomited blood.

-Faust!

The scene changed.

-A Bone Dragon and Death Nobles? What are these?! Cain! Dont hide cowardly and come out! Give me my son!

Ivan shouted with a crumpled face. But his hands were tied by Shanons consecutive attacks, and his feet were tied by the Poison Breath the Bone Dragon was emitting from above.

He was trying to endure the attacks, as if proving why he was called Lion of the Battlefield.

The more he did, the more intense Shanons attacks became. The Bone Dragon wasnt able to show its full power because it was incomplete, so he had to be more active.

Then, Shanon suddenly fell back.

It was because someone appeared from the darkness. Ivan frowned, not knowing what kind of tricks the new enemy had up his sleeves.

-Its been a while, Father.

His face hardened seeing his sons face.

-Hm? You have an interesting technique. Its a bit familiar. But he definitely died.. no, is this the way you look like after youve died?

-Are you?

In the next scene, Faceless and Hanryeong were in the middle of an intense battle.

Faceless fought with the bandages like Faceless always did and tilted their head feeling something was wrong.

Hanryeong also felt something strange from Faceless while he was swinging his nine swords around.

-Huhu! I didnt think Id meet you here! My dear friend!

Suddenly, Faceless burst out laughing. It was an indifferent but chilling voice.

It was a voice that no one had heard before.

At the same time, the air around Faceless changed. As if Faceless was a different person, the hidden figure appeared.

The bandages around Faceless became sharper. Faceless looked free-spirited all this time, but during this moment, Faceless looked like a true swordsman. Ivan wouldnt be able to follow either.

Kwang

Hanryeong shouted while pushing against the attacks.

-Facelesss body.. no, you swallowed him?

Other scenes flashed by.

The undead army, stepping on the pursuing forces. The Monster Portents continued to power up as they swallowed the souls. With the limits of the Black King released, they began to grow again.

There was also Victoria and the Ice King protecting Yeon-woos body.

The scene ended there.

Yeon-woo nodded, thinking there was no point in hiding what he was doing.

Yes. Like you said, Ive come to cause ruckus here, too.

The Monkey King snorted, flabbergasted.

I felt this before, but youre like that kiddo when it comes to creating incidents. And your personality, too.

He added that there wouldnt be a boring moment here while he was tied up thanks to Yeon-woo.

So how are you gonna cause a ruckus? I might seem like Im relaxed right now, but Im bloody tired.

Ill serve the you, the Monkey King, from now on.

The sheddings mouth curved wider.

Youre saying that youll be like them?

Dum

The world shook again. It meant the ceremony was still progressing quickly.

[00:04:21_36]

There wasnt much time left for Yeon-woo. Taking into consideration the time it took to return to his body, he had less than 3 minutes left.

I wont deny it. But Ill be better than them.

Based on what?

You know what theyre after, dont you?

.

Theyll try to swallow the Monkey King as well and become another face of the Heavenly Demon..

The reason why the Devil Army needed the Philosophers Stone? They tried to excuse themselves saying it was to serve the Monkey King, but there was no need to tie up the shedding here.

Their true goal was something else.

Swallowing the Monkey Kings shedding successfully. The head bishop was planning on becoming a new divine being.

The Monkey Kings shedding frowned, already knowing that was the plan.

So you want me to become your hunting dog? I dont want to.

Even so, the Monkey King didnt want to give himself easily to Yeon-woo.

He was looking at the Despair and Grief of the Black King.

The bindings of the Black King. Do you think I dont know what it is?

.

This time, Yeon-woo closed his mouth. Actually, his plan was to bind the Monkey Kings shedding to the Cast before the Devil Army could do anything, like he had to the Cyclopes. But the Monkey King wasnt as easy to persuade as they were.

Kookookoo

The shakings of the world became severe. The cracks in the space opened up. The world would soon disappear at this rate.

[00:02:56_08]

What should I do?

Yeon-woo contemplated deeply. The shedding didnt seem like it was going to fall for his persuasion. Then did he have to force him?

But even though he had fallen, he was still a divine being. It was hard to do it without his consent. Then did he have to use the Bathorys Vampiric Sword? He didnt know if his skill would work properly because of the sheddings situation.

Then lets do this.

The shedding broke the silence again.

Yeon-woo paid careful attention to words.

How?

Just swallow me.

It was unexpected.

Yeon-woos eyes widened.

But then.

Ill disappear. Of course.

The sheddings eyes were sharper than ever.

I dont want to be pulled away like a cow dragged to the slaughterhouse. Ill make my own destiny. Ill choose.

The monkey born receiving the vitality of the sun and the moon. He was born a king, and he gained a divine level after overcoming many obstacles.

Destiny was only something for him to destroy.

So.

He was planning on doing the same now.

Ill choose where Ill die. Its an additional life Im living right now anyway. I wont feel wronged if I die.

Yeon-woo felt himself become overwhelmed by the sheddings power. Was this the true appearance of a real king and god?

He suddenly wanted to be like the Monkey King.

However, I have two conditions.

The Monkey King raised two fingers.

Go ahead, sir.

First. Step on those sons of b***** who made me like this.

I will.

Yeon-woo nodded.

He was planning on doing that even if he didnt ask.

Second. Wake me up later.

But.

Yes. You might think its impossible because my existence will disappear. I said I wouldnt feel wronged if I died, but if I can, I still want to live a bit longer. So think about it well. Therere still some ways to resummon me.

Yeon-woo thought of the additional option in the Cast of the Black King.

Summons of the Dead.

It said only the dead could be summoned, but what if there was a way to get around that?

How about it? Can you do it?

Yes, sir.

That mouth of yours.

The Monkey Kings shedding laughed for the first time.

Then, in an arrogant manner, he spread his arms apart and spoke.

Only

Fine. Swallow.

Thank you for everything.

Yeon-woo bowed.

You say that like well never see each other again.

A smile spread on the sheddings face.

Yeon-woo approached him with his right hand. Sharp teeth appeared on his palm.

Clack, clack

[Bathorys Vampiric Sword has been released.]